LONDON: Prime Minis­ter Shehbaz Sharif met Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf in London on Sun­day and invited him to visit Pakistan.

Mr Yousaf, who des­cribed their engagement as ‘very positive’, said: “I am grateful to him [Mr Sharif] for making time for me. I am proud of being the first Scottish Pakistani to become Scotland’s first minister, and am a son of the soil of Pakistan.

“We talked about doing more on trade, investment, education, Pakistan’s flood response and the challenge of climate change.”

He also told reporters after the meeting that there had been a major increase in the number of Pakistani students coming for higher education to Scotland.

Mr Yousaf said Scotland and Pakistan have a long tradition and history going back many years. “The prime minister extended a formal invitation for me to visit Pakistan and I will definitely come.”

When asked about the political situation in Pakis­tan, Mr Yousaf remarked, “Politics of Pakistan are for the people of Pakistan.”

The first minister expressed his gratitude to those Pakistanis who supported him, and said he got scores of messages from people in both his parents’ hometowns in Pakistan.

Mr Yousaf’s father, who was born in Mian Channu tehsil of Khanewal district, emigrated to Glasgow with his family in 1964. His mother, born in Kenya to a family of South Asian descent, also moved to Scotland in 1968 and has family in Faisalabad.

In March, Mr Yousaf became the first Scottish Pakistani and first Muslim to lead the country, after contesting a close race for the leadership of the Scottish National Party in the aftermath of Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation. His victory was hailed as a positive step by ethnic minorities in Scotland, who said it was hugely symbolic.

Prime Minister Sharif described the meeting as positive. He said Mr Yousaf was a young and energetic politician. Pakistan enjoys great relations with Britain and equally great relations with Scotland. There are over 80,000 Pakistanis in Scotland. We discussed holding a joint investment conference on how to further increase and strengthen ties, by focusing on education, trade, solar energy and investment.”

Given clean chit

Asked about the National Crime Agency’s investigation into allegations against Mr Sharif last year, the prime minister said that PTI Chairman Imran Khan used state machinery to launch a malaise case against him in the United Kingdom through the NCA but that he was given a clean chit.

The premier said the agency’s investigation spanned the UK, Dubai and Switzerland but that he was vindicated. He accused Mr Khan of wasting taxpayer money on frivolous investigations.

Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2023